Water Element: Novice

In the encampment of the Heavenly River Legion, within the small courtyard of the Ice Blade Squad, a campfire crackled and popped.

The spoils of war had just been divided, and the evening was reserved for a victory feast.

At this moment, the gazes of the five Sanctuary powerhouses were all fixed intently on Fukaloss—or, to be precise, on the unremarkable little bottle in her hand.

Inside was wine.

It was a tiny bottle, filled with fruit-brewed wine.

In Gobada, where elements were thin and even survival was a struggle, this was a luxury that only the true top-tier god-level beings within the Royal City could enjoy.

"Milady—" Gideon transformed into a clumsy, giant bear, his round head leaning forward as he practically drooled.

Fukaloss laughed and took out five small wine cups. "Alright, alright, it was meant for you all anyway. As long as you keep risking your lives for me, there will be no shortage of rewards."

Barn looked down at his cup as it was filled with a viscous, pale gold liquid.

As his nose twitched, a long-forgotten aroma of wine wafted up.

In his past life, he hadn't been much of a drinker, and when he was Barn on the Yulan Continent, he would have looked down on such low-concentration fruit wine. Yet, the moment the slightly spicy, sweet fragrance touched the tip of his tongue, his eyes suddenly grew hot.

In this godforsaken place, being able to have a sip of wine felt like a dream.

"Crunch, crunch—"

A strange chewing sound rang out.

Barn turned his head to look, only to see Declan actually tossing the entire cup—wine and vessel alike—into his mouth, chewing it into shards before swallowing.

Gideon was immediately indignant. "Hey! That's such a waste!"

Declan was righteous. "Wine evaporates so easily. If you lot just stare at it without drinking, that's the real waste."

Upon hearing this, the others suddenly realized, and one after another, they tilted their heads back to pour the wine into their mouths, holding it there, reluctant to swallow.

Blair's wine remained untouched, and Declan immediately set his sights on him. "You're a Beholder; you don't even drink. Let me take care of that for you."

"Go away."

Blair tilted his head back and, treating the entire cup of wine like eye drops, slowly poured it onto his single vertical eye.

"Pfft—hahaha..." Fukaloss burst into laughter.

Even the usually cold Dragonman Julia looked reluctant. "Milady, this wine must have been very expensive."

"When we all become god-level, I'll take you into the Royal City and get each of you a bottle!" Fukaloss waved her hand grandly.

"Milady is mighty!"

"Alright, let's start eating the roasted meat!"

The joyous victory feast did not last long.

Beside the campfire, as Fukaloss ate, her aura suddenly shifted, and the water-style divine power began to circulate quietly around her body.

She had reached an epiphany.

Barn and the other four instantly restrained their auras and retreated obediently to their respective rooms.

Fortunately, the courtyard was small, and the divine power leaking out during Fukaloss's epiphany was enough to sustain their physical needs, saving them even the trouble of eating.

Barn continued to watch Fukaloss, who was in a state of meditation in the courtyard, and asked Blair beside him in a low voice, "Blair, is Milady also a Beholder?"

Blair nodded slightly, his voice calm. "You must have seen Milady reveal her innate talent during the battle earlier."

The others all nodded.

The golden eye that could unleash the terrifying Soul Freeze had left a deep impression on them.

"Actually, there is nothing to hide," Blair said slowly. "Milady is the monarch of our Beholder race—the Evil Eye King."

"We Beholders mainly live in Hell. The males awaken the death attribute, and their talent is Wither Light; the females possess the water attribute, and their talent is Soul Freeze. I am a female Beholder."

"The Evil Eye King, however, is a one-in-a-million mutation. She possesses an affinity for both death and water, wielding both Wither Light and Soul Freeze, and her power is dozens of times stronger than that of an ordinary Beholder!"

Barn gazed at Fukaloss's figure in the courtyard, his heart shaken.

He had not expected her to be an Evil Eye King. For such a powerful creature that had appeared in the original story, her talent was no weaker than that of an ordinary divine beast. In the original work, Linley had been helpless against such creatures in the Necropolis of the Gods.

At this moment, Fukaloss was surrounded by soft, water-blue divine power; clearly, she had made a brand-new breakthrough in the Laws of Water.

Barn also specialized in the water element.

Previously, the two had exchanged insights, and he had even chosen to share some of the secular philosophies from his past life with her.

The path of the Laws in Coiling Dragon was not something that needed to be kept secret; through exchange, it was easier to draw inferences and achieve a broader understanding.

Fukaloss had also been unreserved—her water-style divinity was formed by fusing the Water Element and the Ice Profound Mystery, which was extremely rare among Lowgods. She had explained her experience of fusing the Water Element and the Ice Profound Mystery into a godhood to him one by one.

The Ice Profound Mystery was the only one among the six major water-style profound mysteries that directly enhanced physical attacks.

Barn had attempted it countless times, yet he had never been able to find the threshold.

Yet at this moment, watching Fukaloss quietly in her state of epiphany, feeling those divine power fluctuations that were as fluid as water and as cold as ice, moving with perfect, rounded ease, his mind was struck by a thunderous jolt.

A sliver of enlightenment was quietly born.

"Barn is having an epiphany too?"

"Look at these Water Element fluctuations... it's a genuine epiphany."

The other four exchanged glances and silently stepped back, careful not to disturb his stroke of fortune.

Opening his eyes once more, the first thing Barn saw were Declan's dark golden pupils, mere inches from his own.

He steadied his mind and asked, "How long was I in that epiphany?"

"Five years," Declan said indifferently.

"That long?"

Fukaloss's voice drifted over from the side, carrying a smile: "It is quite a while. I woke up a year before you."

Barn looked at her and said sincerely, "Congratulations on your breakthrough, Miss."

"Congratulations to you as well," Fukaloss nodded. "My epiphany this time was thanks to the Round Soft Profound Mystery we discussed earlier, combined with the practical experience from our last battle; I've finally fully mastered the basics."

Barn sighed softly: "I only managed to grasp the Water Element. It's a pity; I had hoped to touch the threshold of the Ice Profound Mystery."

"The Ice Profound Mystery is the strongest offensive mystery of the Water element, after all; it's not that easy to grasp," Fukaloss chuckled. "Still, for you to have mastered the basics of three different Water-style mysteries while still at the Sanctuary stage is already extremely rare."

"It is thanks to your guidance, Miss." Barn's eyes lit up. "I want to try fusing these mysteries next!"

"That is the correct path," Fukaloss affirmed. "The bottleneck for fusing mysteries is indeed higher than simply mastering one to perfection, but once you become a god, your future path will be much broader."

"I will work hard!" Barn's demeanor suddenly shifted as he rubbed his hands together. "So, Miss, is there any reward?"

Fukaloss slapped him directly on the head:

"Is grasping the Water Element not enough? Get up and get to work—we have a new mission to take!"